As songwriters it's all too common for two things to happen. First,
songwriting takes a back burner to just about everything else in our busy
lives. Second, when we do find the time to write, we find ourselves writing
in our "comfort zone".

The Sunday Songwriters club is a stretching exercise for your mind.
Arpeggios for the brain cells, so to speak. After all, writing is like playing. In order to get better you have to practice.

Here is how it is going to work:

1) Each Sunday you'll find "guidelines" for that week's song. You'll see
these posted both in the newsletter and on the forum.

2) You take the guidelines and write a song(s) before the next weeks posted
guidelines.

3) You post your lyrics in the thread for that week's Sunday Songwriters
Club.

4) You will offer thoughts and helpful critiques of other's songs. You may find yourself involved in interesting dialogs with other writers.

5) If you are so moved, you may edit and revise your submitted song, or even write up a new one, or even collaborate with someone. Please try not to write more than two songs per suggestion â€“ time would be better spent on revisions.

6)Lather, rinse, repeat next week.

That is it.

But why, you ask.

The objectives are:

1. to bring songwriting to the front burner, once a week.
2. to learn to write creatively on demand.
3. to force yourself to think creatively in new ways.
4. to stretch your mind and writing beyond your comfort zone.
5. to exchange ideas, tips and encouragement with other writers.

The objectives are not:

1. to write commercial songs
2. to write polished songs

Here is a FAQ of questions that have never been asked, (should be a NAQ I
guess).

Q: How do I join the Sunday Songwriters club?

A: There is no sign up. Just submit a song.

Q: Do I have to submit a song every week?

A: No. But part of the purpose is to make a habit of regular songwriting.
Weekly participation is encouraged. Again, it's applying the same principles to your writing that you use to get better at playing.

Q: Where do the guidelines come from?

A: Twisted little minds. Also a "poll" on the bulletin board will be setup
for idea submission.

Q: What can I expect to find in the guidelines?

A: Song subjects, or imagery, (things you find in a bathroom, i.e drains,
makeup, mildew, or a dentist's office, or cars), or something completely
arbitrary, i.e. write about any subject but you must include one of the
following in each verse, green, barrister, toothbrush, etc. Perhaps a particular subject or genre will be the project of the week. Perspective may also appear. The guidelines are not intended to limit you, just to force a different way of thinking. Unless the guidelines state otherwise, you can write in any format, with no restrictions, the topic items are simply your guides.

Q: How will this be judged?

A: It won't. This is not a contest. It is an exercise. Some of the writing
will work, some won't. But it should all be interesting.

Need some help getting started with songwriting? Try these two articles: